Heart or Soul?
by danielleanne
Summary: Jacob finds love in the most unexpected place but can it withstand what Bella and Edward found inevitable? Will true love stand a chance against fate? A very unexpected twist in Jacob's life. Set after Eclipse. Jacob runs and runs until he finds HER.
1. Chapter 1

_**Disclaimer: I do not own any of the copyrighted characters that I write about. No copyright infringement intended. Please don't sue. So hope you like this chapter! Please review after! It'll help me write faster! Haha. Take care!**_

_**Summary: Spin-off from my Soul Mate series. Jacob finds love in the most unexpected place but will that love withstand what Bella and Edward found inevitable? Will true love stand a chance against fate?**_

It's still there. It's still there. Why won't it go away? Where is the numbness? The cold? The emptiness? Why is there still pain? I stopped running right then. I had no idea where I was, but I knew it was time to stop running. It was a forest; that much was obvious. I didn't care anymore. I just felt so tired. So, so tired, but I don't want to sleep! If I do, all I'll see is her! I can't. I can't. I can't, but my body betrayed me and now there was nothing but Bella.

ANNALISE VAN DE CAMP

"Dad! I'm getting dirt on my shoes!" I cried at my father. He raised an eyebrow at me and shook his head as he continued to walk ahead of me and my brother. My new pink hiking boots were now smothered in mud. My matching pink jacket and jeans were now covered in frost as well. It was summer, all right, but that season does not exist in Eastern Canada.

Unlike Nathaniel, I was not thrilled about this hiking excursion to Churchill Falls our father drummed up to spend quality time with us. I for one thought it was a pathetic attempt at making us feel like we were a family. If mother could see me now, she would disapprove of such an unladylike diversion. I wished I went with her to Cabo but unfortunately she was going on her second honeymoon with Grandpa Horace. He was my mother's fifth husband but Nathaniel and I called him grandpa behind his back since he was like seventy years old.

"Stop whining Anna," Nate as I liked to call him, chided. "We're almost to the waterfalls." I groaned as I tried to keep up with the two burly, woodland men, or so they like to call themselves.

"Dad! We could have gone to the Bahamas! We could have gone to Sydney! But no! We had to spend our summer here in Canada! Don't you get the concept of summer? It's supposed to be sun, sand and sea!" My father just laughed it off while Nate glared at me for being so insufferable. I couldn't help it. My father, Victor Van De Camp, the king of iron ore mines, had to work during the summer and since we weren't allowed to go on vacation without him, we were stuck here in this desolate province in Canada.

"Daddy! I don't want to see any water falls if I can't swim in it!" I called after him. Nate stopped in his tracks and turned to face me.

"Shut up, Anna!" growled Nate. "Dad has been planning this trip for months now. You didn't want to go here on Thanksgiving and not even on Christmas. Dad has been looking forward to this since God knows when and you're not making this trip pleasant!" I shot him a look as he turned around and followed Dad's tracks. He was a long way off from us and we had to walk faster to catch up with him.

"Nathaniel! Annalise!" We heard him yell. Nate and I looked at each other and then sped off towards his cries. We found him bent over some sort of animal on the ground in the middle of a clearing.

"Nathaniel, do you have an extra jacket?" he asked as we walked into the clearing. That's when I realized it wasn't an animal. It was a man lying on the ground. I blushed and looked away when I saw that he was wearing absolutely nothing.

"Is he okay?" asked Nate. I didn't want to look just in case he wasn't decent yet. He looked very tan, much like the Inuit in the surrounding villages. Maybe he was one of them.

"He's running a fever!" said our father. I turned around and saw that he was wrapped around Nate's extra jacket. His face was covered in his long hair so I didn't get to see what he looked like. Dad bent down and carried him but once he was standing he fell over. I heard the man groan but still, he didn't wake up.

"He's too heavy," said our father. "Nathaniel, help me carry him." Nate obliged and held on to the man's feet while our father carried his torso. We walked quickly towards the Range Rover that we left on the road a few miles away. They placed the man in the backseat while Nate jumped in the front.

"No way! I am not riding in the back with this guy!" I told them.

"Don't worry, sweetheart," said dad as he slid in the driver's seat. "He's asleep and with that fever, I doubt he'll have any strength to try anything funny."

"That's reassuring," I said sarcastically as I got in the car. The guy was sitting up but his head was resting on the window. Dad started the car and headed back to Labrador City where the nearest hospital was. I looked at the guy and saw that his hair was now moved to the side. He definitely looked like an Inuit but I couldn't know for sure until he opened his eyes. I didn't know if they were pointed like the Inuit's. For a moment I thought he looked sort of handsome, but I quickly brushed off the thought and stared outside the window.

"What do you think happened to him, dad?" Nate asked.

"I think he was mugged and left to freeze to death by some mountain stragglers," said dad. "Whoever said mountain bandits didn't exist anymore was dead wrong."

"Maybe he's a wacko who likes hiking in his birthday suit," I added. "I mean, why did we have to bring him with us? If he wakes up and kills me here, it'll be on your conscience!"

"I seriously doubt that," said Nate. "The part about your death being on my conscience." I kicked the seat which made Nate bump his head on the windshield.

"Dad!" whined Nate.

"Now, now, kids," chided dad. "Stop that. We're just gonna bring him to the hospital and they'll take it from there." We kept quiet the rest of the rest of the drive to the city. Dad pulled over in front of the emergency room. I was in the way of the nurses so I had to jump out of the car so they can get to the man.

"Can we leave now?" I insisted. Dad just shook his head and followed the nurses who brought the guy inside. Nate drove the car into the parking lot while I was left in the driveway. I huffed as I started to follow dad inside. I found him talking to a doctor and telling him how we found the guy in the woods.

"I don't know how he got there, but I think he was mugged," dad explained. The doctor nodded and gestured for us to wait while they called the police to take our statement. Nate came back and sat beside us as we waited for the police. After half an hour two burly policemen, dressed in large furry jackets came and took our statement. After they left us, the doctor came and talked to my father.

"It seems other than the abnormal rise in his temperature, the patient seems to be fine," said the doctor. "He appears to be just sleeping. I think it was from exhaustion but I don't have any explanation as to why he was naked. There doesn't seem to be any injuries so I think we can rule out any mugging."

"Doctor Sloane!" called the nurse. "The patient seems to be waking up." The doctor excused himself and went to the patient. I thought we were finally going to go but my father followed him and so did Nate.

"Urgh! What is wrong with this family?" I groaned as I followed them towards the ward.

_**A/N: That was the first chapter! Please read and review! Here's a few questions I would like you to answer on the review.**_

_**Did I deviate from the story in any way?**_

_**Is there an OOC you wish to inform me about?**_

_**Do you have any suggestions?**_

_**Thank you!**_

_**danielleanne**_


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the copyrighted characters that I write about

_**Disclaimer: I do not own any of the copyrighted characters that I write about. No copyright infringement intended. Please don't sue. So hope you like this chapter! Please review after! It'll help me write faster! Haha. Take care!**_

JACOB BLACK

"Jacob!" Bella called from the field of flowers. We were in a beautiful meadow with tiny little purple flowers, the sun shining down on us and wind whipping our hairs. Bella was a few feet away from me so I walked over to her. Suddenly I was blinded by a light emanating from behind her. Now, she was engulfed in the light. It wasn't beautiful, it was threatening.

I ran over to her but I saw her smiling. She wasn't in trouble. I looked closer and I realized the light was that leech. His skin was glittering while his arms wrapped around Bella who was laughing and looking deep in his eyes. Then I heard her say my name again.

"Edward!" she whispered. No Bella! You were calling me! You were calling me! No! No! No!

"Relax, son!" a deep voice said to me. I suddenly snapped out of my trance and saw several people staring at me. I looked down and saw that I was wearing a paper hospital gown and I felt nothing underneath.

"I told you he was a wacko," I heard a snide tiny voice. My head snapped in that direction and I saw a girl standing behind two men looking smug and very pink?

"Shut up, Anna!" said the boy beside her. They looked very much alike. They had the same blonde hair and the same blue eyes. They must be brother and sister.

"Where am I?" I asked the doctor. I assumed he was the doctor since he was the only one wearing a white coat.

"My name is Dr. Richard Sloane," said the doctor. "Do you recall any of the events in the past few days?" I shook my head and shifted in the bed. I needed to get out of here before they asked anymore questions. I looked at the crowded ward and saw it wasn't going to be that easy.

"Do you know who you are?" he asked. I nodded my head but refused to say anything more. He took that as a sign of my reluctance to divulge anything.

"Where do you live?" he asked again. I was about to answer but thought better of it. If they contacted Billy, I would be forced to go back to Forks. I just shook my head again.

"I can see you're shocked and a little scared…" I snorted and looked at him like he was wearing his underwear on his head.

"I'm not scared," I snapped at him.

"Okay, shocked then," said the doctor. "These people found you in the middle of the woods wearing nothing and running a very high fever." I cursed myself for letting these people find me. The older man who might be their father looked just like his children only with graying hair and green eyes. He looked at me curiously just like his son but his daughter was another story. She was looking at me like I had the plague.

"My name is Victor Van De Camp," said the older man as he held out his hand to me. I reluctantly took it as he started to introduce the others. "This is my son, Nathaniel and my daughter Annalise." Nathaniel smiled and held out his hand as well while Annalise just scoffed and paid more attention to the dividers in the ward.

"I'm Jacob Black," I told them meekly. "Thanks for helping me out but I think I should just go home."

"You don't even have any idea where you are," said Victor. "How can you go home?"

"I'll find my way, thank you," I told him gruffly. Actually, I didn't want to go home, but I had no idea where I was going.

"Yeah right, dude! Good luck finding your way in a paper gown." Nathaniel said while laughing. I slapped myself mentally for being overdramatic with tearing my clothes off before leaving La Push, but I didn't have time to think about that.

"Where am I?" I asked them again.

"You're in the Van De Camp Memorial Hospital in Labrador City," said the doctor.

"Labrador City? Where the heck is that?" I didn't mean to sound rude, or maybe I did. This might just be the worst day ever. I didn't even know what day it was. All I remembered was that I was running and Bella. I winced at the thought. Suddenly, my stomach growled. So loud, that my own growl in werewolf form seemed like a purr compared to it.

"Eew!" exclaimed Annalise. I wished so hard that the linoleum floor would swallow me up right about now.

"I think we should leave Mr. Black now," the doctor told them and then he turned to me. "The nurse will bring in a tray for you and then she'll get ask some questions for your records." I nodded and they excused themselves.

How do I get out of here? Why did they have to put me in a ward with all these people? Oh yeah, because I don't have the money to pay for a private room. I don't even know how I'm going to pay for the bills without calling Billy.

The nurse arrived then carrying a tray filled with some sort of muck. I grimaced as I sniffed it. It smelled like wet Jared. I had no choice but to eat it. I was so hungry and frankly I was still tired. I just needed the energy. I finished everything in about three bites. After that, I looked around the room trying to find a way out. That guy Nathaniel was right. I couldn't very well run around this place with my butt hanging out.

I decided to think about that later and tried sleeping again. It wasn't that hard because all I had to do was close my eyes.

_**A/N: So how was it? Please read and review! Here's a few questions I would like you to answer on the review. **_

_**Did I deviate from the story in any way?**_

_**Is there an OOC you wish to inform me about?**_

_**Do you have any suggestions?**_

_**Thank you!**_

_**danielleanne**_


	3. Chapter 3

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the copyrighted characters that I write about

_**Disclaimer: I do not own any of the copyrighted characters that I write about. No copyright infringement intended. Please don't sue. So hope you like this chapter! Please review after! It'll help me write faster! Haha. Take care!**_

_**Check out my profile so you'll be updated on my author notes.**_

NATHANIEL VAN DE CAMP

I waved at Jacob Black before we left the ward but I didn't think he saw me. His mind was somewhere else, but I doubt it was his hunger that was bothering him. I deduced it was the owner of that name he kept saying before he woke up. Bella. He didn't look much older than I was but he was huge. He must have been a few inches taller than me and that's saying much because I was one of the tallest guys in my class.

I wondered where he was from. When he was finally awake, I realized he wasn't an Inuit native like I thought before. I couldn't understand why we found him like that but he didn't act like some wacko, as Annalise put it. In my opinion, he was sane but it was obvious he didn't know much about what was going on.

Dad was talking to the doctor about Jacob while Annalise was hanging by the vending machines trying to get some diet coke. I snuck a peek through the door and saw the nurse giving Jacob a tray of hospital food. My dad gave sacks of money to this hospital but I knew they didn't spend it on the food. I know because I was admitted here once when I fell in the river when we were hiking a year ago. I felt for the poor guy as I watched him gobble up all that slop they call organic food. He looked like he didn't like it but it was as if he couldn't get enough.

"Nathaniel, here's your jacket," said my father as he handed it to me. "What do you think about that young man?" My dad always asked my opinion about people. Most of the time, I was right. I even urged him once to hire my friend Kim and his friends on summer internship programs in his company. They were a group of Inuit boys I met while playing soccer in the county sports center.

"He's a little gruff," I told him. "I think he wants to get out of here but has nowhere to go. If he did, he would have said something to the doctor about it since he's insisting on getting out of here."

"I noticed that too," said my father. "Maybe we should find out where his family is."

"I agree," I told him.

"Agree to what?" asked Annalise as she stood beside us.

"Agree to helping out that young man we found," said our father.

"Daddy, don't you think we've done enough? I mean he might have been the neighborhood streaker or something and we were nice enough to bring him here!" Annalise whined. I don't know why she disliked Jacob so much but she didn't have a right to tell our dad who he can and cannot help.

"The guy isn't a streaker," I told her. "He must have an explanation about why we found him that way. Dad's just gonna help him find his family so they'll know he's okay."

"Can't you do that some other time? I wanna go home!" cried Annalise.

"She's right," said dad. "We'll come back tomorrow." I nodded and they followed me outside where I parked the car.

VICTOR VAN DE CAMP

I looked down from the loft at my children who were bickering down in the living room. I loved them both so much, but I couldn't get past their imperfections. Even though they were twins, they were as much alike as an orange and an apple. Annalise, although blessed with so much by me and her mother, still looked down on those who weren't as fortunate as we were. Nathaniel on the other hand, was level-headed but immature in so many ways. I hoped that would change one day.

When Allegra and I found out that she was pregnant, we promised each other that our kids were going to be the sweetest little angels ever to grace this earth. Unfortunately, that was only possible between the ages of thirty and thirty-five. I had no doubt that both our kids received all their traits from Allegra. Annalise was as spoiled as her mother was at her age, even more. She was every bit as self-centered, self-absorbed and as selfish as Allegra was. Unfortunately, she also inherited her mother's obsession with pink. I really feel for Horace. Not only did he call me to rant that his new pool at the Hamptons was now tiled in fuschia and mauve, but he was devastated when Allegra made him wear a pink tuxedo on their wedding day. The guy was almost near the finish line and Allegra wasn't making the last days of his life comfortable. She was nice as nice could get but sometimes, she could get on your nerves. The same goes for Annalise.

Nathaniel on the other hand, inherited his mother's penchant for making other people as comfortable as a balloon in a cactus patch. He always liked joking around but sometimes his jokes made other people feel uneasy and embarrassed. Not only that, but Nathaniel was obsessed with pranks. Not the harmless whoopee cushion kind, but the kind you saw on that show Ashton what's-his-name hosted. I deeply regretted letting them install MTV at their house back in Los Angeles. My main concern for him is that he's growing up but it's as if he doesn't want to. I've never seen either of my children take any form of responsibility, let alone any sign of maturity.

I was distracted from my thoughts by the alert of my computer. I looked at the inbox and saw that it was the background check for Jacob. Being the CEO of one of the most successful mining companies in North America had its perks now and then.

There was no record on Jacob except for his birth certificate, but there was some information on his father. Billy Black. It seems that Jacob was still in high school. As a matter of fact, he was the same age as Nathaniel and Annalise. It said that they lived in a town called Forks in Washington. What could Jacob be doing here in Labrador? I picked up the phone in order to call Mr. Black but then thought against it. If Jacob wanted to contact his father he would have done so already.

I may need to talk to that boy tomorrow and ask him some questions. I didn't know why I was so interested in him but then again, I always had a soft spot for people in need. From my observation, Jacob Black was indeed in need of help and maybe someone who will look out for him. I printed the information and put it in my briefcase.

"Daddy!" yelled Annalise. I shook my head and headed downstairs before my children killed each other.

_**A/N: So how was it? Please read and review! Here's a few questions I would like you to answer on the review. **_

_**Did I deviate from the story in any way?**_

_**Is there an OOC you wish to inform me about?**_

_**Do you have any suggestions?**_

_**Thank you!**_

_**danielleanne**_


	4. Chapter 4

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the copyrighted characters that I write about

_**Disclaimer: I do not own any of the copyrighted characters that I write about. No copyright infringement intended. Please don't sue. So hope you like this chapter! Please review after! It'll help me write faster! Haha. Take care! **_

_**Check out my profile so you'll be updated on my author notes.**_

**_A/N: I replaced the 2nd and 3rd chapter. I really recommend that you read it first before you proceed so you can understand the rest of the story, okay? Thanks._**

JACOB BLACK

I woke up and saw the clock on the night stand read 10:00 AM. I groaned and sat up while rubbing my eyes. I tried to stand up but then I felt something snag in my arm and then I heard some rapid beating.

"Sir, sir!" I heard someone say. "Please lie down." Yesterday's events suddenly struck me and I rubbed my eyes again and saw the whitewashed walls and the busy bodies in the ward. The nurse ran over and tried pushing me down on the bed. I saw the effort she was giving so I obliged and lied down. I had no choice anyway. I was still in that silly paper gown and there were too many people in the ward. I deeply regretted my decision last night. I should have used the night shift to escape this place.

The nurse reattached the IV and then left me after giving me a warning to stay until the doctor arrived. I groaned as I laid back down. I looked up and saw there was a TV attached to the ceiling. I wondered what dad was doing right now. Probably watching sports or fishing with Charlie. Charlie; Bella's dad. Ouch. Was it really possible to experience physical emotional pain?

"Hey Jacob!" I turned my head and saw Nathaniel Van De Camp poke his head from behind the divider.

"Uh, hello?" I ventured. I saw he was carrying a large paper bag and he set it down on my night stand.

"I brought you some stuff," said Nathaniel. "I don't know if they'll allow it but I think it's a crime to keep feeding you the crap the hospital dietician cooks. Blech! Besides, they won't dare try to stop me from giving you this stuff." He started pulling out plastic containers from the bag. I immediately smelled the wonderful aroma of human food.

"Why are you bringing me food?" I asked him.

"I saw what they fed you yesterday," he said nonchalantly. "I've been there. I mean, they should have stabbed me with a knife instead of poisoning me slowly. I told Ada to make this for you. Dad said it was a good idea. I mean, we're growing boys. Food constitutes to almost half of what we're thinking. Half of that goes to girls, by the way. By the way dad's out there talking to the doctor."

"You talk a lot," I told him. He looked at me and then laughed.

"You'll get used to me," he said while chuckling. "So, are you like a body builder or something?" Now I was the one who laughed.

"Dude, have you seen yourself?" I asked him. He looked almost as tall as me and I bet I was only slightly larger than he was.

"Yeah, but I'm not as buffed up as you," said Nathaniel. "I play soccer so it's all about lower body strength. You look more like a football guy." I just shrugged. I wasn't that into sports. The strength I had was owed mostly to my transformation into a werewolf, but I didn't want to explain that to him.

"So why is your dad talking to the doctor?" I asked him. "It's not like he knows me or anything."

"He's just helping out," said Nathaniel. "Since you don't know anyone from here and all. Eat up. I'll be back. I'll just tell dad you're up. He wants to talk to you." He left me and I stared at the plastic containers. I was really, really hungry. Well, he did bring it for me, so why shouldn't I eat it? I picked up the first one and opened it. It had roast beef and it was still hot. I finished off everything, including the mashed potatoes and salad in the other containers before they got back. A few minutes later, Nathaniel came back inside with his dad and the doctor in tow.

"How are you feeling, Jacob?" asked Dr. Sloane.

"I feel like a million dollars," I lied. Honestly, I felt like crap. I was hungry as hell and I wanted to get out of this sanitary paradise, only I didn't have any other choice at the moment.

"Your fever is still up, but other than that you're fine," said the doctor, as he scanned my charts. "I can only discharge you if someone will claim you here in order for them to take care of you while you get better."

"No one's coming," I told him bluntly.

"That's what Mr. Van De Camp thought," said the doctor. "That's why he's asked me to discharge you to him." I sat there on the bed half-naked with my mouth gaping open. Victor Van De Camp exchanged a few words with Dr. Sloane, after which the doctor excused himself from us.

"I did some research on you, Jacob," started Victor. "And I'm a little baffled by what I've learned." I shrugged casually as I waited for him to continue. Whatever he found out about me wasn't exactly a glorious biography that it was enough for him to take me in.

"You live four thousand miles away in another country and you have no relatives here or anywhere near this area. I don't know how you got to be here in the first place, but I can see that you're reluctant to ask us to contact your father or anyone you know. You're still in high school and I've come to the conclusion that you ran away from home. How you got past the border without drawing attention to yourself, I'll never know, but I'm willing to take you in just until you decide what to do."

"You don't even know me," I told him frankly. "For all you know, I'm a crazy nudist sociopath." Nathaniel burst out laughing but his father kept his rigid, yet concerned façade.

"You can decide when you can tell us about your nudist sociopath ways, but my son seems to think you're a good person and I trust his instincts because after all, he inherited them from me."

"What's in it for you?" I asked him. Obviously, no normal human being would take in a stray unless they had an ulterior motive. I refused to believe that there were people out there who could show any stranger any genuine compassion. I wasn't raised to shrug off anyone who needed help, but I wasn't inclined to easily trust people either. Growing up within the tribe left no room for understanding the ways of open generosity towards people who weren't family. Victor smiled then and raised a hand to pat my back.

"Nothing really," he answered jovially. "I just think that a kid like you needs a helping hand now more than ever." I looked at the father and son tandem wearily as I contemplated my options. On one hand, I could call Billy to take me away from this place and settle for drowning my sorrow at home in La Push, or I could stay here in Labrador City for a while where I could get away from the past. Away from Bella.

"I need to think about this first," I told him. He nodded in understanding and led Nathaniel out of the ward as I sat there on the sterile bed thinking of what my decision should be. Obviously, I knew what it was already.

_**A/N: So how was it? Please read and review! Here's a few questions I would like you to answer on the review. **_

_**Did I deviate from the story in any way?**_

_**Is there an OOC(Out of Character) you wish to inform me about?**_

_**Do you have any suggestions?**_

_**Thank you!**_

_**danielleanne**_


	5. Chapter 5

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the copyrighted characters that I write about

_**Disclaimer: I do not own any of the copyrighted characters that I write about. No copyright infringement intended. Please don't sue. So hope you like this chapter! Please review after! It'll help me write faster! Haha. Take care! **_

_**Check out my profile so you'll be updated on my author notes.**_

ANNELISE VAN DE CAMP

I heard the crushing of gravel on our driveway as the credits to the end of the movie rolled on the screen of our flat screen TV in the game room. I looked outside the looming glass window that overlooked the hills surrounding our estate and saw Nathaniel's large hummer pull over in front of the entrance. I went back to the large armoire to look for another movie worth watching. I had no choice but to spend my time taking advantage of the few things that could entertain us while I was stuck in this wooded wasteland, like the very slow internet connection, useless cell phones without signals and portable video games Nathaniel brought back from mom's house. I heard the front door open but I didn't bother to greet my father and brother. I didn't want to hear about their trip to the hospital. I didn't know why they even wanted to visit that naked guy. I mean, hew was too weird for words and he smelled like a dog.

"Anna!" called Nathaniel. I groaned as I turned to go over to him and see what he wanted.

"What is it?" I asked annoyed. I stopped in my tracks as I saw Nathaniel standing beside the weird naked guy. He was wearing some of Nathaniel's clothes and it was obvious that his pants were too short for him and his jacket to tight for his lean and muscular body. He looked at me warily as if he was waiting to get an earful of complaints. His expression was right on target.

"Daddy!" I screamed. A few second later my father stepped in the entrance and looked at me with a confused expression.

"What is he doing here?" I asked bluntly. My father suddenly realized his error that he hadn't explained to me any of their plans to bring him here.

"You remember Jacob, right?" said my father. "He's going to stay with us for a while." My eyes widened at the realization that this stranger was going to live with us and we didn't even know anything about him.

"Save it, sis," said Nathaniel. "The decision's been made." Jacob looked awkwardly at the floor and opened his mouth to say something but my father cut him off as if reading his mind.

"You will not leave just because my daughter isn't fond of you," said my father firmly. "You are a guest in this house and," he turned to me then. "My daughter will not give you any trouble about it." I snapped my mouth shut and spun around and stalked off in a huff back to the game room. I heard them talking and my father was instructing Nathaniel to take weird naked guy to one of the guest rooms. I really wished Nate didn't take him to the one beside my room. I slumped down on the couch and heard footsteps behind me. I didn't turn around to see who it was because I already knew. I was in for another one of my father's "you need to step up and be mature about the situation" speeches.

"Anna?" said my father. "I'd like to ask a favor from you." I shrugged without facing him, but I listened anyway.

"I'd appreciate it if you would refrain from making Jacob feel uncomfortable or unwelcome in any way." Sometimes I couldn't understand my father. He always had this unusual penchant to take in strays and charity cases like this Jacob Black guy. I mean, it isn't enough that we had to go through his and mom's messy divorce but we have to share his attention and affection with the greater homeless population of North America.

"We don't even know him and you're willing to let him live here with your idiot son and innocent sixteen year-old daughter?" I almost yelled.

"Innocent my ass," interrupted Nathaniel. "That'll be the day." He entered the room with weird naked guy named Jacob in tow.

"Language, Nathaniel," my father reprimanded. He turned to me then and asked, "Can I count on you, Annalise?" I stared daggers at all of them and replied with venom in my voice.

"I can be civil but not necessarily friendly," I growled through my teeth. Jacob didn't look the least bit unnerved from my attitude but my father looked relieved while Nathaniel looked skeptical.

"We can live with that," said my father. "Now who's up for some grub?"

"All right!" exclaimed Nathaniel. "I'll take you to meet Ada, our nanny slash cook slash surrogate mom. She and Anna are close but I'm her favorite because I eat a lot of her cooking." I followed them towards the kitchen were Ada was preparing our lunch.

"Hey mom!" greeted Nathaniel. Ada just shook her head smiling, while my dad turned a beet-red color. As annoying as Nathaniel's tactless quips are about dad marrying Ada, it was fun to see both of them squirm every time they were teased about it. We met the sixteen year-old Ada Wilson the day we were born. She graduated from high school just then and was looking for a job to pay for college. That's when mom found her while walking in the park in Los Angeles, California. Dad was just starting out as one of the executives in the iron ore company that was now ours, so that meant less time for the babies and more work for our spoiled brat of a mother.

Ada worked during the day, taking care of us and went to night school, finished her course in business and finance and finally got her MBA before we started second grade. Ada was good and ready to leave our dependent butts around that time but that's when mom and dad's problems were just starting. She decided to keep working until we were old enough but that was when things started majorly falling apart. When mom and dad's divorce pulled through when we were twelve she decided to extend her stay with us. She knew what it was doing to me and Nathaniel so she did what she could. She became the only thing that made us want to get up in the morning. She became our rock.

Dad gave mom full custody of us with the exception of a two-month's stay with him each year since he wanted us to go to school in the States. A few months after the divorce, we stayed with daddy here in Labrador City. Ada went with us everywhere, so when we first visited daddy, she saw how devastated he was for us. He and mom broke up in good terms but he wasn't so lucky with us. We didn't understand the reasons for divorce at that age. Ada helped us through it but little did we know that she was helping dad as well.

We loved Ada almost as much as we did our parents. So when we found out that she and dad were dating, we were ecstatic. They only started officially when we turned fifteen. They figured we were mature enough to handle it by then. By that time, it was Nathaniel and I who insisted that Ada move in with daddy instead of taking care of us. We were sixteen years old for crying out loud. We even supported Ada to start pursuing her dreams since we took out almost most of her life when she took care of us. Another surprise was in store for all of us, including our father, when Ada admitted that she's been working even though she was taking care of us. She owned a large company that bought and sold other companies, as I understood it. She did all this while making us breakfast, lunch and snacks in the comfort of our own home. Our nanny who was going to be our stepmother was almost as rich as our father. Boy, were we lucky or what?

"Ada Wilson, this is Jacob Black," said Nathaniel. "He loved what you made for him yesterday. Ate everything up except for the plate like I did." Ada smiled and held out her hand after wiping it on her apron.

"Nice to meet you Jacob," said Ada, while shaking his hand. "What would you like for lunch this time?"

"The pleasure's all mine, ma'am," replied Jacob while smiling. It was the first time I've ever seen him smile. He looked better when he smiled instead of scowled. "I'll have anything they're having."

"Call me Ada," she said while turning back to her cooking. "Which one are you referring to? Annalise's veggie plate and salad or Nathaniel's twelve course meal?" Jacob laughed along with Nathaniel at Ada's joke. That was the first time I've ever heard him laugh as well. It was like a smooth baritone chuckle, the kind that when you hear it, you can't help but smile. I shook my head and tried pushing out those thoughts. Why would anything Jacob did even remotely make me feel elated?

Penelope, the maid, set the table while we waited for Ada to finish cooking. I almost choked on the juice she served me when I saw Jacob helping her. Penelope looked as surprised as Nathaniel but my father was beaming at him. We were gonna get an earful in three, two, one…

"Now, why can't you two be like Jacob, here?" said my father. Nathaniel and I looked at each other and rolled our eyes. After a few minutes, Jacob helped Ada bring the food to the table while we all sat down. Jacob sat at the empty chair next to Nathaniel. After my dad said grace, Nathaniel and Jacob started chomping down on the food. I was used to my brother's appetite, but with Jacob to back him up, I expected us to run out of food by lunch tomorrow.

"So, Jacob," started my father. "Since you don't have any things with you I was thinking that the kids could go shopping with you." My eyes widened as my father said this which led me to blurt out,

"I don't think so!" I told my father. "I am not gonna be this guy's personal shopper."

"Unless you want me to buy him "un-color coordinated outfits" which will lead to you whining about why he's wearing red with orange, you are gonna come with us." Nathaniel declared. Jacob silently raised his hand and we all turned to hear what he was going to say.

"Do my clothes have to be pink?" he asked shyly. I scoffed as everyone else at the table laughed. I could even hear Penelope laughing in the kitchen.

"Funny guy," I said snidely. "You better wish I'm not picking out pink briefs for you." Jacob held his hands up in surrender while laughing. I kept quiet the rest of the night in my room, which unfortunately was next to the guest room Nathaniel put Jacob in as the rest of the family including Jacob stayed in the living room.

_**A/N: So how was it? Please read and review! Here's a few questions I would like you to answer on the review. **_

_**Did I deviate from the story in any way?**_

_**Is there an OOC(Out of Character) you wish to inform me about?**_

_**Do you have any suggestions?**_

_**Thank you!**_

_**danielleanne**_


	6. Chapter 6

JACOB BLACK

Here I was in an ostentatious log cabin in the middle of Eastern Canada, eating roasted nuts next to a ginormous fireplace and talking to an American oil tycoon and his multi-millionaire wife and kid. Can life get any weirder? The Van De Camps were very nice people. Mr. Van De Camp treated me like he did Nathaniel and Ada kept asking me if I needed anything. Nathaniel was telling us all about his last surfing trip in the Cayman Islands when Victor announced that maybe it was time for us to go to bed. I wasn't sleepy yet—I got a lot of rest at the hospital—so I asked Mr. Van De Camp if I could talk to him for a second.

"Mr. Van-"

"Call me Victor, Jacob," he said.

"Uh…V…Victor," I said, my mouth going dry. I wasn't really used to talking to rich and powerful men who wanted to take me in with nothing in return. "I was kind of…actually…I was sort of wondering if…"

"It's okay, son, you can tell me anything." Victor assured me. Son. I suddenly saw my house and Billy staring at something far away. I missed my dad. I quickly shrugged off my thought and returned to the subject on hand.

"I was wondering if you'd let me work for you while I'm here," I offered. Obviously I wasn't going to _leech _off these people while I'm staying here. "You're very kind to me but I'd like to earn my keep. I'm able-bodied and I really don't mind doing any heavy lifting."

Victor looked a little surprised and then he beamed at me.

"That's very noble, Jacob, but you don't have to work to stay here."

"I insist, sir. I wasn't brought up like that. I can't take advantage of your family when you don't even know me."

Victor looked at me thoughtfully and said, "The why don't you let us get to know you?"

"I…" Even if I wanted to, I couldn't allow that. My life was complicated as it is. This was just a temporary setup and if I did let them in, they'd have to know what I really am. At least I'm more human than those leeches.

"It's okay, son," said Victor. "Take your time. But if you still want to work, do you have any other skills? The law kind of looks down on letting minors do manual labor, so I'm sorry to say there's no heavy lifting for you in my company."

"I'm good at fixing cars…" There really wasn't anything else. Unless he needed seven-foot wolves to do some courier work for him?

"Perfect!" said Victor. "We have a garage downtown where some employees fix the transports needed for the mines. Some kids even work there. Friends of Nathaniel's."

"That would be great, sir," I told him. "So when can I start?" Fixing cars again. I missed doing that, even if I'll be fixing trucks for coal transport this time.

"Oh, no, no, no," said Victor shaking his head. "You just got out of the hospital! Which reminds me, Ada will check on your fever later. So off to bed with you. You're still sixteen and even my kids have bedtimes here."

Uh-oh. Now how do I get out of this one? I looked at the window and watched the snow floating down. I've never really stopped to appreciate how beautiful snow was. Hmm.. snow.

ADA WILSON

"Jacob?" I called out. It was getting pretty late and I still had to check on Jacob's fever. The poor boy. I'm glad Victor could help him out.

According to what Victor found out about him, he was a nice boy. No records of crime, drugs or anything in his permanent record. And he was also a Native American. I would love to ask him about his tribe. I always did regret not being able to pursue an American History elective when I was in college. I always thought of it as an alternate interest, but sadly, the economy interested me more. So now that I had more time to myself, I decided to take up researching the local natives as a hobby. I might even be able to help them using my education. Maybe learning about other Native American tribes might help me understand the Inuits better. They were friendly and approachable in general, but they were slightly reserved about their tribe's traditions.

"Jacob? Are you there?" It was dark in his room and he might be asleep or just like any other teenager in summer, he was hiding from the threat a parent announcing that he was sick.

"Come on, Jacob," I teased. "It's just a little temperature check and I'll be on my way."

"Ummff"

"Jacob? Are you all right?" I turned on the light and found Jacob tangled up in the sheets. He was asleep. Poor kid. Maybe he was tired from all of the week's events. I walked over and slipped the electronic thermometer in his mouth.

"Huh..98.8," I murmured. "A little higher than normal but compared to last time…" I patted his head—still a little warm, I think—and silently wished him good night before going back to our room.

JACOB BLACK

My dad said my sisters were obsessed with shopping when they were teenagers. He thought they were possessed by demons who talked about nothing else but fashion, kinds of heels and the colors that were in style that season. Apparently he hasn't met the Nazi Shopper. That's what Nathaniel called Annelise. And I thoroughly agree.

"Are you serious?" she asked sardonically.

"What's wrong with this one now?"

We were at the only place where you could buy clothes in Labrador City. The Town Square. I was checking out a batch of flannel shirts, trying to find one that fit me. I didn't care what color or pattern it was, so long as it was XXXL. Nate was XXL but his clothes still clung to my skin making me look like a bouncer. I'm glad my muscles attract girls' attention but it's really a disadvantage when it comes to clothes shopping. Especially knowing it usually gets ripped apart whenever I get angry or decide to shift.

"It's flannel!" Annelise pointed out as if it wasn't obvious. "Checkered flannel, at that!"

I really didn't see her point. But apparently, she was in charge since Nathaniel was at the counter flirting with the cashier. Annelise had rejected my choice of denim(Brokeback, much?), polyester(Don't come crying to me when you start to chafe), nylon(Why don't you just go into the forest and weave a jacket out of pine needles while you're at it!) and even leather(To the salesperson: You murderer!). The only thing left was cotton and it was either underwear or tourist shirts that said Labrador City in big, yellow letters.

"Please, please enlighten me why I can't buy this very cheap, very durable and very comfortable shirt because it's flannel!" I said flannel as if I was as offended as she was at the idea of wearing it. Annelise narrowed her eyes at me and crossed her arms.

"Do not mock me," she said in a quick and low voice. "If you wanted to go back to the 90's you should have said so, so we can find a time machine for you. If you are going to be spending time with my family, you will learn to cooperate with me. Nobody in this family, and I mean nobody shops without asking my opinion first!" Says the girl wearing a pink and purple snowsuit. Honestly, I feel like I'm going colorblind.

I might be overreacting a little bit, but this girl scared me. I didn't even think before I stammered out a 'Yes, ma'am' and threw the shirt away.

"Good," she said smugly. "Now, let's go find a real mall."

I groaned at the idea of looking for another place where she could insult the salespeople and mock the selections. I was still a little tired from last night because I had to clean up the slush I brought in to cool me down when Ada checked on me. I also had to dry my sheets with my warmth and that took half the night. The things I do to seem normal. Sheesh. Now I have to suffer through a day with the Nazi Shopper.

"Nate! Time to go!" Annelise yelled. Nate actually jumped at the sound of her voice. Who wouldn't? Screechy? Squeaky? Squealy? I don't think there are enough S-adjectives for it. The cashier giggled and winked at Nate before turning back to the customer waiting in line.

"Don't do that!" complained Nate as he stomped towards us. He turned to me and asked, "Did you get what you need?"

I held out my hands to show how empty they were. Nate shook his head and gave me a sympathetic look.

"Where else are we gonna find clothes?" he asked Annelise.

"I'm thinking the nearest mall," she replied as she checked her reflection on the glass door before exiting the store with us.

"The nearest mall is in Montreal," Nate said as we walked back to their car.

"Exactly."


End file.
